Friday, August 10, 2007

Michael Peca wants to jump aboard the Rangers' bandwagon. He expects to find out today whether the feeling is mutual.

Peca's agent, Don Meehan, told the Daily News last night that he has been talking to only the Rangers in recent weeks regarding a deal for the two-time Selke Trophy winner. And Meehan said he expected Rangers GM Glen Sather to inform him today whether the club wanted to slot in Peca, 33, as the checking center behind free-agent prizes Scott Gomez and Chris Drury.

Apart from the cap issues, its interesting to watch how the composition of the Ranger's 23 man roster has changed over the years.

After failing with big name talent, the Rangers reverted to a roster filled with young Euros.

Now it appears, with the signings in the past two years of Drury, Gomez, Avery, Shanahan, and now possibly Peca, Sather has reverted back to big name, middle aged North American players.

It will be interesting to see how Tom Rennie adjusts to this change. He is well suited to coaching young Euros. How will he fair coaching big name North American players? His past record is rather mixed on this score.

According to NHLnumbers.com, the Rangers have 21 players signed at approximately $52 million. If they add Peca at $2 million this gives them a complete 22 man roster at $54 million.

To get under the cap they will trade Kasparatis away for "a bag of pucks" or assign him and his salary to the AHL, and replace him with Marc Staal or Girardi - for a NET salary saving of $2.2 million.

Then they will carry over Shanahan's $2.8 million of performance bonuses to 2008/09.

These two moves save $5 million taking this year's cap number down to $49 million vs. the $50.3 million maximum cap. This gives them enough wiggle room to cover short term injuries during the season - but they will have little room to add strength or depth at the trade deadline. Hence the risk of such a "tight" cap strategy.

Also, net year becomes a problem as the $2.8 million of Shanahan's bonuses will have to be paid then. If the cap increases only $3 or $4 million next year the Rangers will really be up against it.

However, Sather's strategy appears to be to take a run at the cup this year and worry about next year - next year!

How are the wings "up against the cap" w/respect to Markov? I think that it has more to do with the fact that Detroit doesn't need to go out of their way to sign Markov with their current lineup... Maybe if Chelios had retired...

Putting Markov on a $3-million+ deal over a few years would put the Red Wings up in the $48.3-million range for payroll. That's not exactly 'comfortable' territory — especially if you want to add someone at the deadline.

"According to NHLnumbers.com, the Rangers have 21 players signed at approximately $52 million. If they add Peca at $2 million this gives them a complete 22 man roster at $54 million."

Can we kill this notion that the Rangers are at $52 million once and for all? It's been parroted as fact, and it couldn't be more wrong.

That set of calculations includes Kasparaitis - who will be playing with the Rangers only as an absolute last resort [read: if no one else can possibly suit up to play defense ... including Joe Stiff in the stands]. It also includes only 11 forwards - where's Anisimov [who likely will make the team by most accounts]? Where's Marc Staal [who will make the team long before Kasparaitis]? Where's Callahan [who some think will make the team]?

They're not included in that calculation ... yet a guy who clearly isn't going to make the roster is. Great logic.

Of course, how much cap space the Rangers really have going into Opening Night is completely dependent on what one thinks the roster will be when the season starts - which means one can show the Rangers have anywhere from no cap space to $9 million or more. But to believe they're currently over $50 million [and especially as high as $52 million] is so patently wrong, it's not funny. It's grossly inaccurate.

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About Me

A sportswriter at The Globe and Mail, James covers the NHL and the game of hockey. He is a member of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association, a radio and TV analyst with TSN and was the NHL network manager at SB Nation from 2008 to 2010. A graduate of Thompson Rivers and Ryerson universities, James grew up in Kamloops, B.C. — one of Canada's great hockey cities — and was a season ticket holder in the Blazers' glory years.

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